The AER20 keynote address from Wylie Burke, MD, PhD, discussed the implications of the lack of diversity in research. This is a real problem in genetic research: how can a full range of genetic variants be studied if a non-diverse population is assessed? In community research, when obtaining consent, a researcher must make sure the community is fully informed about the extent of the research. Read more
There’s a growing trend in Social, Behavioral, and Education Research (SBER)–machine learning–in which investigators often request to obtain, through direct interaction and intervention, various sets of data on human subjects, including their physiological (i.e., data obtained from either invasive or non-invasive means) and/or biometric data (e.g., audio/visual recordings). The research as originally conceived may or may not have been considered human subjects research, but its ultimate purpose is to teach machines how to think, draw conclusions, and process information in much the same way humans do. Read more
The 2018 Advancing Ethical Research Conference (AER18) presentation titled “It’s Not as New as You Think: Understanding How to Operationalize the Revised Common Rule” provided information regarding the history of the Common Rule and the recent changes to it. It is important that IRB professionals and staff become familiar with these revisions, as they have important implications for the oversight and the conduct of medical research. Presenters Jeffrey A. Cooper, MD, MMM; Kristin Craun, MPH, CIP; Jessica Huening, JD; Heather Pierce, JD, MPH, helped to clarify much of the confusion concerning the recently revised regulations. Key changes in the revised Common Rule were emphasized. An important part of the presentation delineated what happens as these revised rules become effective. This was helpful in understanding how to transition from the “original” Common Rule to the revised Common Rule. Read more
In June 2017, PRIM&R hosted the webinar series Focus on the Revised Common Rule. Comprising four sessions on the topics of informed consent, exemptions and types of review, biospecimens and identifiable private information, and implications for social, behavioral, and educational research (SBER), these webinars provided a close look at the most significant areas of change described in the revised Common Rule. This is Part I of a two-part series. Read more
On January 28, 2017, PRIM&R hosted PRIM&R’s Primer on the Revised Common Rule, a webinar to introduce the human subjects research community to the changes present in the revised Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects. Published on January 19, the revised policy, or “Common Rule,” represents the first significant regulatory changes in human research oversight since 1991. Presented by P. Pearl O’Rourke, MD, and Heather Pierce, JD, MPH, this webinar provided an overview of the noteworthy changes from the current rule, as well as a discussion of various possible fates of the revised Common Rule under the new presidential administration. Read more
